This blog is kept by Elder Nathan Gardner's family. It will include pictures and letters, we hope you enjoy!

Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Week 2 - The Plague

I am typing on a spanish
keyboard, I apologize for all spelling, capitalization, and punctuation errors
in advance.

Elder Gardner's District at CCM

FROM LEFT TO RIGHT IT
GOES ELDER MAXWELL, McFarland, KREUTZER, LAWRENCE, HARRIS, HARTWELL

(NOW BOTTOM ROW) Me GARDNER, GARFIELD, GEE, HALLMAN, ABILEZ, OSTLER

Elders Ostler and
Abilez

Elders Gardner and
Garfield

Elders Harris and
Hartwell

Elders Lawrence and
Kreutzer

Elders Hallman and Gee

Elder Maxwell and McFarland

I have just completed the second
week here at the CCM, it has been an interesting experience. Starting on this
last wednesday I began to have some digestive problems, and some rough trips to
the toitlet. I just would not end. I had to visit the toilet no less than 20
times during a span of two days.

To make matters worse, everytime
I would go back to eat and they would feed us some weird sausage crap that
would absolutely wreck my digestive system. The milk here is so weird, it has
an awful aftertaste and it makes my insides turn over. But when they feed us
translucent eggs covered in avocade and sour cream for breakfast I usually
choose the weird stomach milk. Despite the fact that I have had diarrhea all
week, I still think about food a lot.

I have dreams about hamburgers,
pizza, real cereal, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on real bread. I dream
of ice cream, brownies, pie, and then more ice cream. I have just come to
accept the food for what it is, my mindset when I go to the cafeteria now is changed.
I have come to accept a low quality of food, when I go to the cafeteria I know
it is going to taste terrible and that it is going to give me chronic stomach
aches and then even more severe diarrhea. But, I still eat it, there is not a
lot of other choices. I never thought I would adjust to a diet that comprises
almost entirely of fruit and eggs but it has. They feed us eggs with every
meal, and they do things to eggs that should not be done to the vilest of
criminals. Their favorite sauce to put on eggs is a translucent snot like
mixture that tastes like Play Doh, I just do not get it. Food is probably the
number one comfort from home that I miss.

My companion is a nice guy, I
just wish he would not whine. His name is Elder Garfield, but he is not similar
to the cat Garfield, he is maybe 110 pounds soaking wet with ankle weights. I
am a person who you just should not whine to, it is not within me to be
tolerant of that. But I am learning, I have been extremely patient and have
grown to respect him more as a person.

During the day we sit in classes
all day, and then the food is terrible, and there are people here that you
really just have a hard time loving. But despite all of that I am having a
great time, I am learning the Spanish language, and I am improving my study
habits and teaching skills. It is all about the attitude, if you do not
approach the MTC worthy, ready, excited, and willing to work you will hate it.
I have felt the power of God around me as I have been engaging in this work, I
feel like I am in the right place and I have felt in my heart that this is what
I need to be doing at this point in my life.

If any of you have never read
The Book of Mormon, I promise you if you read it and pray to know the truth of
it sincerely it can make you a happier person and the Holy Spirit will testify
the truth of it to you.

Thanks for reading, I hope that
all of you are doing well and I wish you all the very best.